


Insanity

by Fierygirl0 (orphan_account)



Category: Bleach
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Religious, Angels, Dubious Consent, M/M, The Devil is a Sneaky Bastard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-26
Updated: 2014-07-26
Packaged: 2018-02-10 13:59:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2027670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/Fierygirl0
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Trapped in Hell, plaything of the Devil... is it bad that not everything he says sounds like a lie? - Sequel to 'Heaven'.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Insanity

I'm an idiot.

Even as my sword flashes, cutting through leathery grey skin and white bone as easily as air, that thought consumes me. I'm an idiot, moron, retard… Pick a word of your choice and use it, it's probably accurate.

The shrieks of the demons around me are background noise, the arc of my swings and arch of my body purely instinctive. It no longer takes any real attention to fight, not low level scum like this anyway. They're new, maybe weeks old if that, and it's painfully obvious. There are older ones waiting at the sidelines of my fight – ones that have learned to appear at least mostly human – but so far they haven't interfered.

I wish they would.

Killing a few demons, ones that actually pose some semblance of a threat, would help take my mind off my stupidity. But none of these fledges requires me to as much as think. Basic attacks, no imagination… I haven't fought foot soldiers like this in a long time, but I guess being in hell will at least give me an ample supply of those.

God, I'm a fucking idiot, and I feel like such shit for it.

I dispatch the last of the demons with a blow through the throat, spinning and flicking the blood from my sword as I look at the audience of demons surrounding me.

"Come on! Can't _one_ of you stand up to me?!"

Please, _please_ , let me lose myself in a fight and forget about my shame. Maybe if I'm lucky, one will kill me, let me escape this place with at least my sanity still intact. How much can God really fault me if I go out swinging, taking as many demons with me as I can? Even after what I did, and what I allowed, that would redeem me at least a little.

Wouldn't it?

The sound of gravelly laughter sets me on edge and I give a quiet snarl, glaring at the laughing demon.

"What?" I ask sharply, as most of the demons turn to leave. One of the remaining few grins at me, teeth white and sharp beyond all reason.

"Newbies don't know any better, but we do. You're the boss' new toy, and he likes his toys in good condition till he's done with 'em. So fuck off, kid, no one with a brain will touch you."

No. No, no, _no!_

I take a shaky step back as the few demons left turn away, leaving me alone in one of the many seemingly endless areas of moonlit sand. You can run for miles here and never escape whatever area you've been locked in, never find anything but more sand and the occasional tree of impossibly sharp stone. It isn't hot here, either, not any part the unbearable heat that I was expecting. Instead it's cold, a biting, freezing, cold that steals inside of you and saps your strength and will. Each breath feels like an icy dagger's been shoved down my throat, twisting inside my lungs till I expel the breath.

There are a few ways to combat that cold, as the _bastard_ implied when he dumped me here – what feels like an eternity ago, but it _can't_ have been that long – but, well… The best I could do was reverting fully to my angel form and summoning my armor to cover my lack of clothes.

"Be glad," a voice rumbles from behind me.

I spin, wings flaring and teeth baring. The man standing there raises an eyebrow and then scoffs, arms crossed over his muscular chest. He's got blue eyes, matching blue hair, and he's tall and built pretty impressively. He's dressed in a white tank-top and black leather pants, his feet bare against the sands. A twitch of his shoulders flares feathered wings as black as coal and I inhale sharply, staring for a moment, before the wings settle back against the man's back.

There were angels that went with Lucifer when he originally defied God, but they weren't originals, and they were wiped out a long time ago. At least, that's what we were told. Are some still alive, were we lied to?

"You have any idea what demons do to angels when they catch them?" I give a small shake of my head, grip tightening on my sword, and the fallen angel snorts. "Yeah? Well for whatever the fuck it's worth, pray you never do. Come on brat, Aizen sent me to retrieve you. Let's go."

Oh there is no _way_.

I scowl and take a step back, glaring at the older looking angel. "I don't think so. I'm not going to him."

I expect an attack, or a curse, or something, but the angel just shrugs. "Whatever," he grunts, eyes flicking to one side, "I'm not sticking around. I'm not a fan of watching the almighty _dick_ play unless I have to."

"You're just going to go?" I ask, my confusion obvious, and he uncrosses his arms and glares at me.

"Lemme clue you into something, brat. You're not rebelling, you're not fighting, you're giving him a reason to fuck you over. He doesn't _need_ one, but he _likes_ to have a reasonto fuck with you, and you're handing him one on a silver fucking platter. You're playing into his hands, and he's laughing at you." He looks away and snorts, teeth baring for just a moment. "I'm the last fucking person who should be giving you this advice, but it's true. The faster you do what he wants, the easier it'll be. You can't win, there's no _fucking_ point to fighting, so just give him what he wants."

"Which is _what_ , exactly? My obedience? I'll _die_ before I give him that, count on it."

The angel gives a harsh bark of laughter and crosses his arms again, blue eyes returning to meet mine. "It's your _faith_ he wants, brat, the obedience is just a bonus. And if you think he'll _let_ you die before he has it, then it's fucking painful how naïve you are."

He moves closer to me, letting his arms fall to his sides as his mouth curls in a contemptuous sneer. "He'll tear into you until all you know is blood, and pain. You'll bleed at his feet, _beg_ to give him anything he wants, and it won't be enough. And once he's hollowed you out and broken you a thousand times over, once he's done with you, and _if_ you're still sane, you'll get to spend the rest of eternity being his dog. You'll beg for death, pray for it, but you _won't_ get it, brat. _Count_ on that."

I stare up at the angel, eyes wide and sword hanging loosely from my fingertips. A faint chill slides down my spine, bringing an involuntary shiver with it, and I take an unconscious step backwards.

I'd like to deny what the other angel has said, I'd _like_ to swear that I'll never break and the bastard will never have my faith, but I'd be lying. I could feel it in the traitor's power – stronger in passing than me on my best day – and something in me knew it the moment he first revealed himself to me. He's dangerous, powerful beyond belief, and I can't hope to compete with that kind of strength. I'll fold long before he decides to stop, no matter how I struggle or what I do.

"Very wellsaid, Grimmjow."

The angel and I flinch as one.

I whirl, anger and wariness rising in my chest to block out the remaining doubt and fear. The traitor is standing not ten feet away, cool amusement in his brown eyes and a small smirk twisting his lips. The other angel – Grimmjow – steps away from me and gives a derisive snort.

"Could've just fucking picked him up yourself if all you were going to do was follow," Grimmjow snaps, several long strides taking him to the traitor's side, "I'm fucking outta here."

Sousuke stops the angel with a brush of fingers along his shoulder and a glance, but it's just as effective as if he'd somehow frozen the other angel in place. Grimmjow stills instantaneously with his back to me, black wings flicking restlessly.

"Enjoying my world, Ichigo?" Sousuke asks softly, stepping towards me.

"No," I answer as I tighten my grip on my sword, fighting the urge to match his steps towards me with ones away from him.

"Well, it's Hell for a reason, isn't it? You'll learn to tolerate it eventually."

He steps close enough to reach, and I lash out with the steel sword, aiming high for his throat and face. His smirk twitches upwards and quite suddenly he's blocking my sword, the steel pressing harmlessly into his bare hand. The next moment his fingers curl around the edge of the blade and his power flares around me. I give a choked gasp and collapse to one knee, my hand falling from the hilt of my sword to press against the sand.

"I think that's enough of that, my dear angel," the traitor says quietly, as the burning pressure of his power softens and retreats. I look up at him just in time to catch the flash of silver, before the hilt of my own sword slams into the side of my head and knocks me to the sand.

The world goes black for a few moments, and even as my sight fades back in, it remains blurry. I stir and bite back a groan at the knife of pain that drives into the side of my skull. My eyes squeeze shut and I slowly draw in a breath, feeling the wet slide of what must be blood trickle down across my cheek and the bridge of my nose. The taste of the same fluid is sharp on my tongue, and I can only assume the impact of the blow must have sliced the inside of my cheek open on my teeth.

Hands curl under me and, as I'm roughly lifted, I clench my jaw, unable to help the noise of pain that escapes me at the jostling. I open my eyes, but the blur of movement and color is dizzying and I quickly close them again. It feels like only a few minutes before I'm unceremoniously dropped.

I hit the ground hard on my back, and immediately roll onto my side with a groan of pain as I clutch at my head. The surface I've been dropped onto is hard, solid, and – like everything else in this world – cold. None of these things are friendly to my current disorientation.

Dimly, I hear someone say my name and I open my eyes again, looking up. The world is still fuzzy, but at least now it's more or less still, and I can vaguely focus on the figure standing in front of me. Sousuke is staring down at me, mouth moving, but only a vague drone reaches my ears. He leans down, hand outstretched, and I cry out in pain as I feel his fingertips press against the side of my head. It feels like each finger is a separate brand that's being burned into my skull, and I weakly flinch away from the agony.

Warmth emanates from his hand and I relax, eyes flickering closed as the warmth sinks into my skull and the pain vanishes in its wake. His hand pulls away and I open my eyes. The world has returned to being clear, sharp, and I look up at Sousuke.

"My apologies, Ichigo," the traitor stands and I push myself up onto my elbows, shaking the last of the fuzziness from my head, "I forget how fragile made angels are occasionally, it wasn't my intention to strike you quite so hard."

He offers me a smirk as I get to my knees and spit blood onto the white stone floor. "I'd rather like you conscious for this, dear angel. Grimmjow."

A hand curls into my hair and yanks my head back, dragging me to my feet and arching my neck back. I give a hiss of pain, reaching up and grabbing hold of the other angel's wrist, unsuccessfully tugging at it to try and make him let go. In retaliation, he pulls a little harder, arching my neck farther than it naturally bends.

Sousuke steps forward and his hands rise, curling around my throat to rest against the back of my neck. He meets my eyes with a soft smile.

"God has abandoned you to me, dear angel. You belong to me now, by his own admission."

"Never!" I snarl, jerking against the hold Grimmjow has on me.

In the next moment, I cry out in pain as Sousuke's fingers burn into my skin, fire lighting on the back of my neck. I squirm and bite back the second cry as he slowly drags his fingertips forward and around either side of my neck, leaving a burning trail of pain around it. His fingers meet at the front of my throat, and he pulls his hands away. The circle of flesh around my neck that he touched still burns, the pain not at all lessened by him removing his hands.

"You can go, Grimmjow. But don't leave the palace, hm?"

Grimmjow releases me, shoving me to my knees with a single hand to the center of my back. "Sure, whatever."

I can hear him leave, his footsteps echoing on the stone floor, before the creak and slam of a door. I look up at Sousuke, struggling to quell the involuntary twitches from the pain at my throat. It's not unbearable, more the stinging of an old burn than the agony of a fresh one, but it's still painful enough to grate on my senses.

"You'll learn, angel."

His hand flashes forwards and closes around my throat, dragging me up to eye-level with him so my legs dangle in the air. The pain intensifies at his touch and I give a shout in reaction, automatically kicking out at him. My kicks impact, but he doesn't so much as flinch.

"You can't harm me, angel, that's one of the first things you'll come to understand. Each attempt to do so will cost you, and trust me, you'll come to fear the payments. Now, let's set some basic rules of conduct between us, shall we?"

He throws me back through the air and I slam into the far wall hard enough to crack the stone, and leave behind a dent, as I fall forward and to the ground. My wings flare and I manage to catch myself on my feet, staggering but remaining standing. He's instantaneously in front of me, a hand catching me by the folds of the uniform beneath my armor and shoving me up against the wall. His free right hand catches my left arm by the elbow and pins it against the wall, holding it there as I struggle. There's not much leverage, it's a bad angle for me, and my wings are flattened out against the stone, unable to do much more than flap wind at him.

"I, my dear angel, will take what I want, when I want. If-"

"No! I-" He pulls me forward and slams me back against the wall with a soft smile, driving the breath from my lungs in a rush.

"If you fight me you'll be punished in distinctly painful, and perhaps humiliating, ways. If you don't, then things will go easier and I will refrain from harming you, at least for now." He releases my clothes and trails his fingertips over my throat, the sharp increase of pain as his fingers brush over the ring of burned skin making me give an involuntary jerk. "This will teach you that every moment without pain is a gift, and each second of peace must be earned. You will live with this until you do something to gain its removal."

Sousuke lets go of me and steps back, soft smile still firmly on his lips. "Come with me, Ichigo."

I press back against the wall, unable to stop the ridiculous notion that I'm safer that way, and shake my head.

"No."

Before I can blink he has me by my right upper arm, his grip tight enough that I can feel the bones grinding together, and I clench my teeth against the pain. He drags me forwards, steering me across the stone floor at his side even as I struggle.

"You can obey or I can makeyou obey, dear angel, but let there be no misunderstandings here. Either way you will do what I want you to, it is only the state you end up in that will vary."

"Let _go,_ " I snarl, beating my wings against the air and leaning back. Surprisingly, he does let go, and I stagger, trying to balance against the sudden loss of resistance. When I do manage to steady myself, I look back up at Sousuke, and my stomach drops at the amusement in his brown eyes.

"Well, if you're so insistent. It won't be nearly as comfortable, but I suppose that's your choice." He steps towards me, the gentle smile twisting his mouth at odds with the sharp amusement in his eyes. "Remove your armor, angel."

I stiffen. "What?"

The hand that touches my throat is gentle, but the reaction that it gets is anything but. _Pain_. I cry out, my legs buckling beneath me as agony overtakes my mind. I collapse, eyes flickering under the onslaught, and the pain vanishes as my back touches the ground.

"I'm not in the habit of repeating myself, my dear angel. Something else that you'll learn as we get to know each other better. You heard me, now are you going to do as I've ordered, or not?"

Whatever he has in mind I'm sure I won't like it, nothing good could make the devil that amused.

"No," I grind out, propping myself up on my elbows and starting to rise.

An instantaneous kick to my sternum lays me flat on my back again, struggling to breathe, and Sousuke kneels down at my side with a soft smile. "Of course not, how could I demand you betray your precious God by obeying me, hm?"

He touches the leather over my torso and it dissolves into light along with the rest of my armor, leaving me in only the older style linen clothing beneath it. I finally catch my breath and start to struggle, trying to pull away from the older angel. His hand flattens against my chest and pins me to the ground, immovable as a mountain.

"Fun fact, angel. Our dear father created me as well, remember? Everything I am, he made me."

"No! You betrayed him!"

Sousuke laughs. "And how did I do that, angel? You forget, I am one of God's _original_ angels. Humans were given the capacity to be good or evil as they _chose_ , and those humans that become angels retain that ability, to a more limited degree, but the true angels weren't created with that. We see the world in black and white, good or evil, and our moral compasses are so fixed to these ideals that we are incapable of any action we deem wrong. This is not an idea, or a theory of mine, it is fact. So my ability to betray God, could only have come from God himself. He created me to betray him, I was _designed_ to be the evil to his supposed 'good'."

He smirks and gives another quiet chuckle, meeting my wide eyes. "You'll understand eventually, angel. God knows full well that none of what happened was your fault, in fact you did better against me than anyone has in a very long time, but he doesn't _care_. You've been tainted, and that makes you useless to him."

 _No_. I mutely shake my head and he gives a tiny shrug, smirk still pulling at his lips.

"I don't expect you to believe me yet, but eventually..."

Sousuke reaches forward with his free hand and lightly lays it beside the one keeping me pinned down. "Relax, angel, this won't hurt that badly."

His left hand clenches and pulls back, and a burning pain spreads across my skin as a white light is pulled from me. It's not that bad, not close to what he's done before, but it's enough to make me grit my teeth and stifle a groan. The light strains, pulling against me with enough force to make me arch against Sousuke's hand, and then snaps with a defining _crack_.

I scream.

Everything crashes down on me at once. Pain, anger, _fear_ , all vibrant and intense and pressing inwards on my mind. It's overwhelming, and it takes me a few moments to notice that my voice isn't the only one screaming.

Sousuke releases me and I automatically scramble backwards, the scream dying in my throat as I collapse to the cold stone floor. Something in me stretches and I can _feel_ the entity become fully aware inside of me.

" _'Ello, partner... Long time no see."_

"What _is_ it?" I gasp out, trembling under the still present overdose of emotions attacking my senses.

" _That's rude, talk to_ _ **me**_ _, partner."_

Sousuke chuckles and I flinch, eyes flashing to him. "He is everything your God locked away from you, dear angel. Your memories, anger, pride, fear, _desire_. Everything that made you _human_ , to put it plainly. God may profess to love the humans, but when it comes to his servants, he prefers they lack emotion and a sense of self."

The traitor stands and walks over to me, shoving me onto my back with a foot. "All I did was open the door, angel, it was your God that created the monster behind it."

The creature inside of me laughs, its voice high-pitched and grating. _"He's got it, partner. God made me when he made you, and put me in chains so I'd never be heard. Guess I got dear Sousuke to thank for being loose again, huh?"_

I shudder, staring blindly up at Sousuke. "No," I say, and I honestly don't know if I'm replying to the traitor or the demon inside me.

Sousuke kneels down over me, left hand reaching down and gently tracing the curve of my jaw. His eyes are strangely soft, almost pitying. "I am powerful beyond your ability to comprehend, dear angel. I could manipulate your senses to give you agony, or pleasure so intense you'd beg for it to stop. I could cut you apart and heal you again so quickly you wouldn't even realize what had happened. I could take us to heaven's door – though I couldn't step inside – and back again within a second. I can even bend reality to a limited extent if I wish to. But what I _can't_ do, what _no one_ but God can do, is change your soul."

I stay quiet and still as his hand leaves my jaw and moves upwards to the curve of my right wing, fingertips brushing along the black feathers.

"Your wings are a physical manifestation of your soul, of your status as an angel. I could no more change their appearance than remove them. _God_ made your wings black, and _God_ marked you as tainted, dear angel. Not me."

Sousuke gets to his feet and steps away from me, the pity vanishing from his eyes. "I'll send Grimmjow to show you to your room, angel. You have tonight to think about things."

" _Then tomorrow the_ _ **fun**_ _starts, huh?"_

He sweeps from the room and I slowly get to my feet, folding my wings against my back. The demon laughs – the sound reverberating inside my skull – and I wince, tension building in my shoulders.

"Leave me _alone_ ," I hiss, and the demon laughs louder.

" _How'dya want me to do that, partner? I'm_ _ **in**_ _you,_ _ **part**_ _of you. What're you gonna do to stop me?"_

The question blindsides me, leaving me without an answer, and the demon gives a cackling howl of amusement that nearly drives me to my knees with its volume. I raise a hand to my head, squeezing my eyes shut, and take in a deep breath against the headache I can feel starting at my temples.

" _'S not all bad, partner,"_ the demon says after its laughter finally ends, _"after all, Sousuke's a fucking Adonis, huh? Don't even lie, you_ _ **liked**_ _the feel of him fucking you,_ _ **liked**_ _how good his cock made you feel, didn't ya?"_

Shame burns my cheeks and sinks hollowly to the pit of my stomach. "I _didn't know_."

" _Man, God knows how to make 'em. Wonder if he already knew what Lucifer was going to be when he gave him a cock that big?"_

The door behind me slams open and I whirl to face it, the demon going silent in my mind. Grimmjow is standing in the doorway, a heavy scowl on his face. I stare at him for a moment before he snorts and speaks.

"Come on, brat," he snarls, "The sooner this is done, the sooner I can get out of this hellhole of a palace."

I start towards him and he turns on his heel and walks away. His pace is fast enough that I have to nearly run to catch up to him, and he doesn't slow, even as I come up to his side. The corridors are all made of the same white stone as the room Sousuke had taken me to, and unlike the shadows of that room, the corridors are brightly lit and almost blinding. They're punctuated by occasional unmarked black doors, or bisected by another corridor, but there are no signs, or any other obvious marks, that I can see to distinguish one way from another. Nevertheless, Grimmjow navigates them without hesitation, even as I become hopelessly lost.

After a few minutes, Grimmjow makes an abrupt right down another corridor and then stops. Each side of the corridor is lined with black doors, each with a white number emblazoned on them. Evens are on the right, odds on the left, and Grimmjow makes a jerky motion towards the odds.

"You're eleven, read the fucking numbers and don't go in any of the other rooms."

Without another word – and without waiting for a response from me – he cuts in front of me and walks over to the right, entering the door marked '6' and slamming it shut behind him. The sound echoes in the corridor for a moment before fading, and I make my way down towards the door on the left marked '11'. I hesitantly reach out and turn the black knob, pushing the door open. The room is small and plain, dull grey as opposed to blinding white, and furnished only with a small bed in the left corner and a floor to ceiling mirror on the far wall.

I step inside and shut the door behind me, moving to the bed and sitting down.

" _Eh, could be worse. Bed's small, but big enough for a good fuck if you're imaginative and a little flexible."_ The demon cackles. _"_ _ **We're**_ _flexible, partner, and I'm sure Sousuke's imaginative."_

"Shut up," I snap, lying down on my side on the bed. Even here it's cold, and the wall at my back seems to leech the heat straight out of my skin.

" _Could do some seriously kinky shit with that mirror too. Bet Sousuke'll fuck you in front of it so you can watch his cock slide in and out of you. That'd be fucking_ _ **hot**_ _, don't you think?"_

I curl into myself, shutting my eyes and struggling to ignore his words.

I won't let the demon's taunts move me, and I _won't_ accept what the traitor has told me. If I stay strong, if I keep myself together, then God will bring me back.

He still cares, doesn't he?

Doesn't he?


End file.
